Clarion Closes Its Doors

On the heels of the openings of Delano Las Vegas and SLS Las Vegas are we about to see the next implosion of a Vegas hotel? The off-Strip Clarion, just west of the Las Vegas Convention Center, marked its last day Tuesday.

We stopped by the property this morning and found security guards patrolling the grounds. The one we spoke to said there were no guests inside and that the property would be demolished. Over its history, the hotel has undergone more name changes than a former mobster in witness protection. The Las Vegas Sunrecounts the various name changes here as well as the succession of owners, among which included Debbie Reynolds.

Employees had reportedly been warned of an impending closure and, over the weekend, stopped taking reservations past Labor Day. The hotel had been known as The Debbie Reynolds Hotel, The Paddlewheel, Royal Inn and the Greek Isles. It held the distinction of being the only Clarion with a casino.

Greek Isles, circa 2008.

This writer enjoyed several fun comedy shows there over the past few years, but always felt the venue was out of place. The lack of a strong hotel client base hurt the bottom line of many productions. Bankruptcies and foreclosure further complicated matters, with the most recent in 2009. Well-known economy brand Clarion took control in 2013, but evidently wasn’t able to turn the tide to save the property.

Somerset House Motel, circa 2010.

One Clarion performer, balloonist Rob Cole, told the local NBC affiliate that the property is expected to be absorbed by the nearby convention center. The former Somerset House Motel that used to exist across the street was demolished in 2011 and its lot is still empty. When Clarion was known as The Greek Isles, it was scheduled for demolition in 2008, though the recession put those plans on hold and Clarion was able to come in and attempt to resuscitate the property.

Time will tell if this building, too, will be demolished or repurposed.

(PHOTOS: Greg C.)

Comments (12)

WWF Hotel...

If I remember correctly, this was the hotel/casino that the World Wrestling Federation (now World Wrestling Entertainment) was close to buying several years ago. Not sure what happened that caused the deal to fall through.

no big deal

i stayed there in 2007. my friend was a flight attendant and that was the hotel that had her airline's contract for the year. i crashed with her for two nights since she was able to book a back-to-back layover in vegas. the room was fine, the location made it easy to walk over to riviera, and the slots only casino with rubes singing karaoke in the lounge gave me little interest in booking a stay there.

ABout the WWF Hotel

I wouldn't be surprised if Vince McMahon (he has, what, 98% of the voting power, so I doubt anything happens without his say-so) noticed how much the company lost on its Times Square restaurant and got cold feet.

Of course, for all I know, it could have had something to do with not wanting to associate Vegas with his wife Linda's Senate campaigns.

I hope something better will take this place.

Convention Center

What exactly does: "...absorbed by the nearby convention center" mean? Are they just going to turn it into a parking lot/garage, or are there plans to build an additional facility for the convention center?

@LeArtStar

Lack of Real Journalism

@LeArtStar: I'd chalk up that bad reporting by the NBC "journalist" for two reasons. First, I doubt that a balloonist (?!?) from the Clarion is privy to unannounced LV Convention Center plans. Second, there are three hotels and a condo tower between the Convention Center and the Clarion. That makes this plot of land useless for anything other than overflow parking. Even then, it's a long way to walk from this location to the center.

royal inn

never stayed there but way back when use to play blackjack there. If you cashed out at the cage with 100 in chips they would first call the pit boss before paying you off. Always felt like I was sticking it to them when that happened. Of course, probably wasn't a good thing to do to often.

Clarion

Never stayed at this one, but I have stayed at a few other Clarions and they were all terrible. It seems to be the brand of last resort, when you can't meet any other franchise's standards. No love lost here.

Ah Paddle Wheel...

My sister and I spent many a great childhood vacation playing games here... when we needed a break from the high glitz and crowds of our Strip entertainment options (i.e., Circus Circus midway)...

I want to say they also used to have some sort of all-you-can-eat ribs or crab legs special.... at which our waitress famously looked on in disbelief when (a) my mom allowed my 7-year old sister to order crab legs and (b) my sister managed to demolish several plates full... even with having to crack and deconstruct the whole legs herself. :-)